Tag: gunas

Have you noticed that most of what I talk about relates back to the yoga mat? I see many people who want to work on their balance. They mean they want to be able to stand on one foot without falling over. What I know is that standing on one foot will lead to balance in other areas of their lives.

Our culture can be extreme. I think it comes from a desire to have control in a world that seems out of control. Marathon runners, low/no carb diets, workaholics…these are all ways we can be out of balance. The reverse is true as well. Too much screen time, couch potatoes, procrastination are at the other end. Somewhere in the middle is sweet spot.

Yoga uses the gunas to help us find balance. Rajas is the active, driven, passionate guna which is full of ego. Tamas is slower, full of chaos, anxiety, and destruction. Sattva is the harmonious guna, the one in the middle where there is balance, purity, and peace.

We need all three gunas to keep the world moving forward. Our work is to try to stay in a sattvic state more than a rajastic or tamastic state. Use rajas and tamas when needed but strive for the balance that comes from sattva.

Easier said than done, right? This is why I encourage you to come to your mat, breathe deeply, and find a comfortable, easy tree pose. Learn to hold it through any wobbles of the body or the mind. Trust that you’re learning more about balance than standing on one foot. Balance in the body will become balance in the mind and finally in every day life. Or at least most days. After all, balance is a practice too.